Carroll & O’Dea advised the Marist Brothers to keep serial offender John William Chute “well away from the legal arena upon release,” according to a once-confidential 2009 letter resurfaced this week in the ACT supreme court. The letter from the firm to Br Jeffrey Crowe, then head of the Marist Brothers, said Chute was in “good form” but that he was: “Regrettably quite up front about various discussions with Provincials over the years including Br Charles, Br Quentin, Br Weldon. I think we will have some problems with indemnity in due course but not immediately.”

The letter added: “Trouble is fundamentally he has high honesty and integrity levels and all of my ‘suggestions’ about not dumping on others excessively go out the window pretty quickly once there is a conversation under way.” The lawyers described Chute — at that stage in jail for abusing six children — as not a “classic predator” but “a good man with a fair bit of self-discernment.” The document suggested he was too honest and might implicate senior church officials if allowed near legal processes.

The letter was written after Carroll & O’Dea’s lawyers visited Chute in Canberra’s jail. They went to see him to understand whether the Marist Brothers would face civil claims relating to his abuse or be indemnified by the Catholic church’s insurance arm — a question that partly depended on whether the order had prior knowledge of Chute’s offending.

The case involves a survivor known as CQ, who alleges he was abused by Brother Kostka Chute, also known as John William Chute, in 1985 and 1986 at Marist College Canberra. CQ alleges the Marist Brothers knew of abuse complaints against Chute but concealed them; the order denies the claim. Chute is a serial offender who has attracted abuse complaints across Marist schools in Randwick, Bondi, Hunters Hill, Lismore, Coogee and Canberra.

The Marist Brothers were found by the royal commission to have shuffled religious brothers across its network of Australian schools when complaints arose, allowing them continued access to children. The 2009 letter was examined in 2014 by the child abuse royal commission, which decided not to call its author to give evidence.

At the royal commission, Crowe was asked whether the letter showed Chute was “seen as a liability that may impact upon the Marist Brothers and one that they need to sweep under the carpet.” “I agree that he does give the impression there of some liability,” Crowe said. “However, I would also believe — because this, once again, is all part of another series of communications — that there were serious doubts as to the evidence being given by John Chute.” Senior Marist Brothers have previously said the letter was sent as part of a chain of correspondence and was written in the context of “serious doubts” about what Chute was claiming.

This week, Porters Lawyers, the firm representing CQ, subpoenaed two lawyers from Carroll & O’Dea to give evidence, and the court heard the move may raise potential issues alleging professional misconduct. The subpoenas required Carroll & O’Dea’s lawyers to obtain their own legal representation and made the firm’s ongoing representation of the Marist Brothers impossible because it would create a conflict of interest. On Wednesday, Carroll & O’Dea told the court it would have to cease representing the Marist Brothers, causing a sudden halt to the trial and delays that will potentially stretch into next year.

Guardian Australia understands there are currently 15 cases against the Marist Brothers, represented by Carroll & O’Dea, involving Chute. The court also heard that another matter against the order involving allegations against Chute might be delayed. In a statement, the Marist Brothers said it could not comment because the proceedings were ongoing; a spokesperson said the order expects the trial will resume “either later this year or in early 2027.” Carroll & O’Dea was approached for comment.